Personalising Your SMS Marketing

What exactly is personalisation? Does it simply mean adding a first name to your SMS marketing messages? Or is it more than that? You’ve probably guessed – it’s way more than that.
Using people’s names in marketing is great. It does provide a certain level of personalisation that can get people more interested in what you’re sending them. Of course in text messaging, you don’t always have the room for a name, your message, and the required opt out information … usually there just isn’t enough room. So how can you make your marketing messages personal?
Find out about the people on your list. Who are they, what do they buy from you, what services of yours do they use, how old are they, do they have kids? Figure out what questions would be helpful to have answered given your business or organisation so you can create a personal message. One easy way is to know someone’s birthday. That’s one personal message you can send each year. You probably want to market to them more than that though, so get the answers to all those questions you just thought up.
Here is an example. You run a travel agency that books trips all over the world for all types of people. But are those people who go to the Caribbean every spring interested in going to Iceland instead? Maybe. But you know they would be interested in an early booking special for 10% holiday packages to the Caribbean with travel dates during the spring. Those people would consider that a personal message from you, their travel agent. You know they like to spend spring walking the warm sandy beaches and snorkelling in the bright blue waters. Use whatever information you have about your clients’ past trips to personalise offers for their next trip. It’s the content, and the intention, that’s personal in this type of marketing message.
Another example comes from a study done in the US by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The study evaluated how text reminders for vaccinations could help improve the timeliness of immunisations. They discovered that children were 27% more likely to be immunised if the parent received a text reminder that included the date the doses were due. Dr. Stockwell, who led the study, commented that people in the study liked getting the texts because it made them feel the doctor’s office cared about them. The messages were personalised to each child’s information, which in turn proved to the parents that the doctors were really concerned about their children.
If you can make the people on your list feel as though you care about them, know them, or are at least interested in them, your marketing will be much more successful. Go ahead. Give it a try and see how much better you do compared to generic marketing messages.
To learn even more how to get the best out of your marketing read our “Mobile Marketing Guide“.
Related Articles
Do Your SMS Marketing Messages Sound Spammy?
If you aren’t seeing a positive response from your SMS marketing then your list may be thinking of it as spam and just ignoring it like they do much of their email. So take your latest marketing messages and examine them again with these four questions in mind.
[Infographic] How to Write the Perfect SMS Message
Is there such a thing as a "perfect" SMS message? Yes, there is, but there isn't just one example of a perfect message. There are so many uses for SMS messages that each of them would have their own perfect example. How many different types are there? This infographic includes a short list of some types.
Do Your Customers Want Emoji in their SMS Messages?
Emoji are showing up everywhere. Should you be using these cute, fun, and illustrative icons in your SMS marketing? Your customers probably want you to. Around 72% of people have positive feelings about brands who use emoji. But before you get started, you’ll want to find out the details in this blog.
13 Words That Inspire Action in Your SMS Messages
Because they are so short, word choice is important in SMS messages. You need to convey instructions and the benefits of following those instructions in few words. If you’ve ever struggled to find just the right one, check out our list of action inspiring words for SMS messaging.
5 Winter Phrases for SMS Marketing [Infographic]
The Truth About SMS Opt Out Rates
You’ve read all about getting subscribers, the legal and recommended guidelines, and put great offers out to your list. But people still unsubscribe. Should you be worried? Are you doing something wrong? That depends. As the saying goes, you can’t make 100% of the people happy 100% of the time. You will have opt-outs, but whether you have too many is the question you should be asking.
One Simple Trick Can Boost Your SMS Marketing
SMS marketing offers the ability to send time-sensitive offers to your best customers. But are you missing out on the potential of your own brand in your offers? Read this post to see an example of how a simple trick can potentially boost your results.
How to Capture the Essence of Autumn in Your SMS Marketing Campaign
5 Simple Steps to Improve Your SMS Marketing with A/B Testing
Do you ever wonder if your SMS marketing campaigns could be even more successful? Of course, you do! Find out how to put A/B testing to work in your campaigns by following our five simple steps and see your ROI increase